Loki's First Easter
by CreativeReading
Summary: Loki celebrates his first Easter with his wife, Darcy, and her family.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note- **I own nothing from Marvel.

While this is a stand-alone story, it is a part of my Loki/Darcy series. If you go to my profile page, you can read the other stories about how Loki and Darcy met and fell in love.

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**Ch. 1**

**Friday**

Loki walked quickly down the corridor to the council meeting rooms to discuss some last minute details about the trade meeting with the dwarves tomorrow. Asgardians had an almost insatiable desire for the finely crafted metalwork produced in the dwarf realm of Nildavellir. He had tried to rearrange all of his diplomatic duties around his trip with Darcy, but the dwarf king had been quite adamant that the only day possible for the meeting would be tomorrow, once Darcy and Loki were gone. Loki had spent weeks sending messages back and forth to get the meeting rearranged, but to no avail.

Loki had a sneaking suspicion that the dwarf king had specifically chosen that day so he wouldn't have to deal with Loki. Loki prided himself on being a fierce negotiator, consistently getting the best deal for Asgard when it came to trade agreements. He was able to anticipate his opponent's every move and cut him off before any traps were set.

Thor, on the other hand, was far too soft for Loki's tastes, expecting everyone to be full of his own good will and open nature. Thor usually left all external matters to Loki's more than capable hands, but since Loki had promised Darcy that they would go back to Midgard to see her family and celebrate Easter, Thor would have to see to this trade agreement. Thor had promised Loki that he would drive a hard bargain for the good of Asgard, but Loki had his doubts.

Loki opened the massive, wooden doors to the council chambers, glad to see that Thor was alone, contemplating some papers while he was sitting at the far end of the long council table. The regular council would have broke for the day, so Loki would have Thor all to himself.

"Thor, there are a few more things I'd like to go over with you before I leave," Loki began as he approached his adoptive brother. Their relationship had gotten somewhat better over the past year although there were still moments of tension between them. However, since it had been months since either one had thrown the other across a room, Loki considered that to be a vast improvement.

Thor looked up, bleary-eyed. The responsibilities that he took over after being crowned king were weighty. He counted himself lucky that Loki took care of all the external affairs of Asgard, criss-crossing the realms dealing with various diplomatic flare-ups, leaving Thor to focus solely on Asgard. However, when Loki popped down to Midgard with Darcy, even for few days, the entire burden of the realm fell on Thor's shoulders.

"The dwarf envoy sent this over, earlier today. I've not been about to make hide nor hair of it," Thor said, pointing to a lengthy document.

"Have you spoken with our advisor on dwarf matters, Almod?" Loki inquired, looking over the document, squinting at the dense, flowery language.

"Aye. I dismissed him after an hour. A more condescending person I have never met. Present company excluded," Thor gently teased.

Loki nodded. He found Almod to be insufferable as well. He had tried to work with him from time to time as the dwarves were a tricky lot, but generally found it easier to just forge ahead on his own.

"They sent this at the last minute on purpose. They know that the procedures dictate that all contracts and agreements must be delivered the day before any major trade negotiations. This document will take hours to comb through and sure enough, they'll have snuck in some clause or addendum to improve their negotiating stance. Look, I'm not leaving until tomorrow morning. I'll look over this with you. We will work on it together," Loki offered.

"Are you sure?" Thor asked hesitantly.

"Of course. We can't let them best us, now can we?" Loki assured him.

He rang for a servant. When she appeared, Loki smiled. "Please inform Queen Jane and Princess Darcy that we will be here until late tonight and that we're not to be disturbed. We'll need to have our suppers delivered here."

"Yes, your Highness," the servant bowed briefly and turned to go.

"Now, let's get started," Loki said as he turned back to begin pouring over the document.

00000

Late that night, they had finally finished raking through the document, searching for any hidden surprises that would benefit the dwarves in the next day's negotiations. They had caught a few of the dwarves' sneaky ploys that were cleverly tucked away in the contract. Loki felt certain that Thor would be in a good position for the negotiations.

"Well, I should get going; what with the trip tomorrow," Loki said and turned around, nearly tripping on Mjolnir as he did. "What is that blasted thing doing here? Are you really that concerned that you'll be attacked in your own council chambers?" he snarled.

"Well, after what happened a few weeks ago, I thought it best to have it nearby," Thor said dryly.

Loki winced. He had decided to indulge in a few harmless pranks to celebrate the Midgardian holiday of April Fool's Day, targeting Thor, Odin and The Warriors Three. He had been more or less shunned by them ever since.

"Has Odin quite recovered? He's been avoiding me," Loki pointed out, wryly.

"Can you blame him? But, you needn't worry. Father will always forgive you."

00000

As Loki walked back to the chambers he shared with his wife, Thor's words repeated themselves in his mind; "Father will always forgive you." It eerily echoed the upcoming holiday he was about to share with his wife. When they visited her family for Christmas, Darcy had explained to him the religious background of both Christmas and Easter. It was the recurring idea of infinite forgiveness and redemption that made him feel uneasy.

In Asgard, justice and fairness were considered virtues and mercy, while not considered a bad quality, did have a slight connotation of weakness, of placating someone. The idea that only the truly strong could be merciful or show grace never really caught on in Asgard. When his own trial came and Odin, over the protests of the Jotuns, sentenced Loki to rehabilitation on Midgard rather than the death sentence, riots raged in both Asgard and Jotunheim. It was seen as an example of poor judgment and gross nepotism on Odin's part.

Loki knew he was getting off "light" by being placed in S.H.I.E.L.D.'s custody on Midgard and his incarceration was hardly burdensome. For a while, he chalked up the sentence to an old man's foolishness, his misplaced sentiment for an adopted child gone amuck. But, Darcy pointed out that it was tangible evidence of Odin's love for him, braving critics and putting his own kingdom at risk to save his child from death.

For the last few years, the desire for forgiveness and redemption had begun to weigh on Loki. In the beginning, he justified his actions, minimizing what he had done. He called the Asgardian guards that were killed when the Jotuns entered the weapons vaults, idiots for not doing their jobs properly. He called the Jotuns monsters, worthy of extermination. He called the Midgardians ants; tiny, short-lived, insignificant insects.

Darcy had railed at him to no avail, until, one night, she said something that chilled his bones.

"I could have been in New York."

"What nonsense are you talking?" Loki shot back, his temper in full force. He hated arguing with his wife, but he wasn't about to give in.

"If Jane hadn't have been sent to Norway, we had an offer to go to a research facility in New York City. I would have been there."

"I hardly . . . " Loki began.

"It was located near Stark Tower," Darcy said firmly, holding up a hand and interrupting him. "It could have been me. I could have been crushed by the buildings being torn apart. I could have gotten blasted by those aliens. You, yourself, would have mowed me down if I had stood in your way," she said, her voice trembling, her eyes downcast.

"Darcy, I . . ."

"Don't you see? Wouldn't I have just been an ant to you? Some small, worthless life in your way?"

Loki stopped short and peered at his wife, his heart sinking. "I . . . I hadn't thought of it that way."

"I know, sweetie, I know," she said quietly, turning and walking away.

Later on that night, Loki was still up, tossing and turning. His stomach was in knots. He entered the bathroom and was promptly sick, kneeling down, trying to ride out the nausea. His mind kept on flashing to a vision of Darcy's lifeless body, brought down by his own hand.

And the worst part was that he had already done it. Not to Darcy, of course, but to some other man or woman that had been loved just as dearly as Darcy was loved by him. On that very night, someone, either on Jotunheim or Midgard, was wracked by pain and grief, drowning in sorrow over what Loki had done to their loved one.

And there could never really be justice for it. He could never make things right. Loki could spend the rest of his life in jail; he could gladly face the executioner's ax and still, the dead would not come back. There was no real hope for restitution.

Which is why Easter's emphasis on infinite forgiveness and redemption was so puzzling and yet so attractive to Loki. On the one hand, Loki knew that he had a debt he could never even dream to repay. On the other, he knew that he longed for having his slate wiped clean, to no longer feel the weight of the burden pulling him down. He had tried denying his guilt, minimizing what he had done, but he knew that it was just a game, a ploy he had used to escape his crimes.

00000

Loki smiled briefly as he entered into his bedchambers and spied his sleeping wife. He was actually looking forward to seeing Darcy's family the next day and spending time with them. His in-laws had welcomed him in as part of the family, even knowing who he was and what he had done. He would never forget such kindness.

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**Author's Notes-**

1. Up next- Saturday!

2. If you haven't already read them, you can read the story of how Darcy and Loki met and fell in love in my other Darcy/Loki stories.

Lima Syndrome - Darcy and Loki first meet

Stockholm Syndrome - Darcy and Loki fall in love

Loki's First Halloween

Loki's First Thanksgiving

Loki's First Christmas

Loki's First Valentine's Day

Loki's First April Fool's Day


	2. Chapter 2

**Ch. 2**

**Saturday**

Loki fidgeted on the front porch of his in-laws, holding Darcy's hand. He didn't know why he was feeling so nervous. They had never been anything but kind and hospitable to him and he could find no source for his anxiety. Today was the first day he would see them in well over four months, but that was like a blink of an eye to an Asgardian.

Still, he shifted his weight from one foot to another while he waited for his mother-in-law to answer the door. He was glad to be back on Midgard to see his relatives, but he was a bit uneasy. They hadn't told Darcy's family that they were expecting yet and she was now in her sixth month.

"Hello," Darcy's mom said as she opened the door. Her eyes grew wide as she saw the both of them. "You're back! You're back!" she shouted as she rushed into her daughter's outstretched arms.

"Wait. You're . . . ," her mother began as she stepped back and peered at Darcy's softly rounded belly. Darcy was wearing a loose-fitting sweater, but it did not completely obscure her new curves.

"Asgardian food isn't that good. Yep, I'm preggers," Darcy said, with her characteristic "jazz hands" surprise gesture.

"Oh, honey. I'm so happy for you. Come in. Come in."

Loki followed his wife in, receiving tight hugs from both of Darcy's parents. "Your brother's family and your sister's family will be here in a few minutes," her mom explained as they all sat down in the living room. "So tell us everything? When are you due? Do you know what you're having?"

"Let's see. It's a little boy. The due date is around the middle to end of July, but they aren't entirely certain," Darcy said.

"I thought Asgard was so advanced. Shouldn't they know down to the second?" Darcy's mom asked.

"Well, there's a bit of a problem," Darcy began, biting her lip.

Loki could see that she was floundering, so he stepped in. "Since the baby is half-human and half-Jotun, it's an unique case, one the healers have never come across before. They are not proficient in the Jotun birthing process. They are not quite sure what to expect."

"Half-Jotun? I thought you were from Asgard," Darcy's father said.

"I was adopted," Loki said briefly. He had no desire to go into his twisted lineage at the moment.

"Well, can't you just ask these Jotuns what they do for their births? What's considered normal for them?" Darcy's mom pressed.

"The relations between the Jotuns and the Asgardians have never been cordial and, at the moment, they are quite strained," Loki said delicately.

"Well, why?" Darcy's father asked.

Darcy harrumphed. "Look, you know what Loki did here? What he did to Jotunheim was worse."

"Oh," Darcy's mom said softly. "I see."

Loki swallowed hard, desperate to erase the look of disappointment on his mother-in-law's face. "We are trying to mend the broken relationship between the two realms. Darcy and I travel there at least once a month to work on the diplomatic ties between our worlds."

"You killed people on Jotunheim, too?" Darcy's mother asked.

"Yes." He could think of no other answer.

"How many?"

"Hundreds, maybe as many as a thousand or more. I aimed the Bifrost at their world. It caused quite a bit of destruction."

"And you take my pregnant daughter there? Every month?" his mother-in-law asked, each word coming out painfully, slowly.

"Mom," Darcy protested. "He doesn't have any choice in the matter. I insist on going."

Her mother threw up her hands. "Fine. Fine." She stared at Loki. "At the beginning of July, you are going to take me and my husband to Asgard so that I can see my grandbaby being born." Her stern voice brooked no disagreement.

Loki nodded. He knew when to accept defeat.

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Next up- Easter Sunday!


	3. Chapter 3

**Ch. 3**

**Easter Sunday**

Loki woke up the next morning to the sounds of shrieking children and the footfalls of little feet running up and down the hardwood hallway outside their door. Darcy groaned and turned in bed to face him.

"That's our future, you know. No more sleeping in. If my sister's right, no more sleep, period," she mumbled.

Loki smiled indulgently over to his wife. Although his own experience with babies was rather limited, from what he knew, she was right.

"Do you want to attempt procure the first shower of the morning?" he asked ruefully.

Darcy nodded and slowly rolled out of bed. Her parents' house had two bathrooms, but since the second one was located in the master suite, in essence there was one bathroom for all of Darcy's siblings, their spouses and the various nieces and nephews. Getting there first was worth waking up early.

0000

After a quick morning breakfast of scrambled eggs, toast and juice, the entire family was gathered outside in the backyard. It was a warm southern California spring day and it was already in the mid-60s. Darcy's parents, on behalf of the "Easter Bunny", had hidden various colorful plastic eggs filled with goodies around their yard.

Loki grinned as he sipped a cup of coffee on outside deck with his in-laws and saw the two youngest children be given a head start looking for eggs. The toddler and baby wandered around a bit with their parents pointing out the locations of a few of the prized eggs. The baby had just begun to walk with help and held firmly onto her mother's hand as she explored the yard. The toddler was far more independent, racing away from his parents, giggling as they tried to catch him.

After a few minutes, the rest of Loki's nieces and nephews were let loose in the backyard and there was a mad dash to scoop up the remaining eggs. Loki noticed that one of his poor niece had a nearly empty basket, so, with a flick of his wrist, he magically dislodged one of the eggs from its hiding place and caused it to tumble to her feet. He chuckled as her face broke out in a wide smile as she scooped it up and placed it in her basket.

The entire hunt took less than five minutes and Loki idly wondered how long it had taken Darcy's parents to hide all of the eggs. Afterwards, the children were presented with baskets full of goodies, jelly beans, chocolate bunnies, and candy eggs. Loki sipped his morning coffee and grinned to see the delight on their faces.

Then, the children were sent to their rooms to change for the 11 a.m. Easter service. Darcy had explained to him that they used to have the children dress up before the Easter egg hunt, but then they seemed to all end up with grass stains on their dresses and pants.

One by one, the children came downstairs in their brand new outfits. They twirled around and posed for photos for their parents and grandparents. Loki's nieces were wearing an array of pink, white and yellow dresses; their hair was done up with bows and ribbons. The little boys wore khaki pants with white button down shirts and the toddler even sported a clip-on tie. Loki changed into a tan three piece suit with a mint green tie that Darcy had suggested and Darcy wore a flowing empire waisted dress in the same mint green.

00000

"There aren't any traditional songs for Easter?" Loki asked Darcy on ride over to the church.

Darcy grinned. She had subjected Loki to an entire month of Christmas carols on Asgard before they came back to Earth to celebrate the holiday. He was so glad to have peace and quiet once again in their bedchambers.

"Not like at Christmas time. Some churches might play a few specific songs around Easter, but it isn't like Christmas."

Loki nodded. He noticed that there was a bittersweet quality to this holiday, the sacrifice being inexorably tied to the rejoicing.

00000

The church service was quite different than the Christmas Eve service he had attended months before. He didn't know any of the songs for one, but Darcy handed him a hymn book and he followed along. All his nieces and nephews were in their own classroom where Darcy told him that they got a modified version of the message geared for their age range. Loki nodded as he could hardly expect a toddler to quietly sit through an hour and a half of singing and speaking.

Loki was familiar with the subject matter of the pastor's message as Darcy had filled him in at Christmas time about the meaning of both holidays. He found it interesting how the ideas of sacrifice, repentance, and renewal seemed to permeate his life ever since he met Darcy. She truly had a completely different way of viewing the world than anything he had ever seen on Asgard.

00000

After the service, his nieces and nephews crowded around him, showing him all the crafts that they had done in Sunday School. One had drawn a picture of three crosses on a hill. Another had colored in a stone being rolled away from an empty tomb. He commented on each one, praising them for their effort and they all gave them to him as a gift, wanting him to display them in their room in Asgard.

"Take them; you don't want to hurt their feelings," Darcy insisted, whispering in his ear.

"Thank you; thank you. We will proudly display them in our home," he said to the crowd of children. "Now, we had better get back home. I know your grandparents want to cook up a lovely lunch for us all."

As Loki stood there with a pile of crafts, some of them still dripping with glue, he looked over at Darcy. "Whatever are we going to do with these?"

"Put them up on the wall when we get home. We should get used to it. My brother and sister's houses look like modern art galleries," she advised.

Loki shrugged and followed Darcy back to the car.

00000

An hour later, they were all crowded around the dining room table, ready to partake in a big Easter lunch. Darcy had explained that a lot of people had dinner as their big meal, but since her brother and sister had to drive home in a few hours, they usually just ate a large lunch together.

The table was spread with a lovely white tablecloth with a display of cut tulips acting as a centerpiece. There was a spiral-cut glazed ham, scalloped potatoes, fresh green beans with slivered almonds and homemade biscuits. Loki's mouth watered at the smells and he had to admit that he had never eaten poorly at Darcy's house.

Afterwards, Loki performed his in-laws' favorite "party trick" and zapped all the dishes and utensils clean. His mother-in-law came up to him afterwards and gave him a hearty kiss on the cheek. "Thank you, my dear. I really appreciate it."

Loki smiled, glad to see the tension between them of the previous day had evaporated.

"Who's up to seeing some bunnies?" he asked his nieces and nephews, wanting to provide one more piece of entertainment before having to leave.

"Bunnies! Bunnies!" the children shouted and they all gathered around him. With a small gesture, he produced an illusion of a baby bunny perched on his hand.

"It's so cute!" the toddler said, but cried when he went to touch it and it disappeared.

Loki smiled. "Let's try for a more convincing illusion. Shall we?"

Another white bunny appeared in Loki's hand, but this time, it didn't fade to the touch. Each child took a turn stroking its soft fur before Loki snapped his fingers and it faded away.

"You're the best, Uncle Loki," the children shouted and one by one they hugged him. He grinned, thinking that in a few short months he would be holding his own child in his arms for the first time.

00000

After his bunny trick, Darcy and Loki said their good-byes and returned to Asgard. Loki was eager to return back and see how the negotiations had gone with the dwarves. Darcy was looking forwards to sleeping in their own bed at night, as the full-sized bed at her parent's place was minuscule compared to the enormous bed she shared with Loki on Asgard.

On his way to the council chambers to confer with Thor, Loki passed by his parents'' private rooms. He hesitated for a moment and then turned to knock on the door. He was surprised to see Odin himself open the door.

Odin stiffened and then sighed. "Are you here to see Frigga? She's gone to visit her cousin, the one that lives nearby. She'll be back tomorrow." He turned to close the door, but Loki stayed his hand.

"Actually, I came to see you. Might I come in?" Loki asked, hesitantly.

Odin's eye narrowed, but he gave a brief nod and stepped aside to let Loki in.

Loki sat in a great wooden chair in one corner of the room and Odin sat in a similar one across from him. For the first time, Loki noticed how tired and old Odin looked. Even Asgardians age, and Odin was nearing 5,000 years old. Loki didn't know how much longer he would live. A hundred years? Two hundred? Before there always seemed to be time enough to make amends, but perhaps that wasn't true.

"What is it that you want, Loki?" Odin said carefully, obviously wary.

"I. . . .," Loki swallowed hard, looking down at his hands. He began to pick at the palm of his left hand, a nervous gesture he picked up from his mother. He groped for the right words, almost forcing them to come out. "I wanted to thank you. Months ago, Darcy pointed out that you put Asgard in jeopardy, your kingdom in peril, so that I could avoid being executed for . . . . for what I did. I didn't appreciate it at the time; I probably still don't appreciate it fully, but I wanted to thank you."

Odin sat there for a long moment. "Do you really mean that, Loki? It isn't one of your tricks?"

The questions hurt Loki more than they should have, but they were reasonable. How many times had he tricked and manipulated people, using their emotions against them?

He looked up, staring Odin in the face. "I am sincere. I know that you have no reason to believe me, but I am." Loki stood. "I should be going. I need to see how the trade agreement ended up."

He turned to go, but Odin caught his hand. "You have always been my son. Even in your darkest hours I loved you."

Loki took a shuddering breath. "And even when I didn't want to admit it, I knew you were my father."

Odin rose and embraced him tightly. Loki returned the hug, allowing himself to remember, for a brief moment, the years he had adored and looked up to his father.

As they let go, Loki gave Odin a wry grin. "Now, I better check up on Thor's handiwork. He's so kind-hearted, he'll have given away our last gold piece to the dwarf king."

00000

As Loki walked down the corridor, he couldn't help but smile. He supposed it really was the season for renewal and restoration.

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**Author's Note-**

1. Happy Easter to you all!

2. Shout-out to DeGenerateVamp who totally called what I had written for chapter 3!

3. I hope you enjoyed "Loki's First Easter"! I am thinking the next one will be "Loki's First Child". However, I probably won't write "Loki's First Child" until June or July. If you like Avengers (and romance, mystery, etc.), my absolute over-riding passion at the moment is my story **"The Captain's Bride"**. Please,please check it out and let me know what you think!


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